Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Interview

1. Why are you an artist? Because I hate to work regular jobs, and because I was always mediocre at everything, until I started taking being an artist seriously.

2. Is there a concept behind your work? If so, please tell us about it. First off, I would like to say that concept in my work is almost always an afterthought. I come up with new ideas for pieces focusing on a specific image or the overall aesthetic of the finished piece, rather than a concept. I work more creatively when I have a visual problem to solve, instead of a conceptual problem. However, I do look back at work I've made with the purpose of finding a psychological thread that ties pieces together conceptually.

My art as a whole has always carried a theme of beings (human, animal, etc) and their environment. The more narrow concept has often been depicting the two halves, being/environment, standing in opposition to each other. Lately, I feel my art has been representing more of a unifying concept of how humans interact with and change their environment.

3. Why do you use the medium that you use?I'm working right now using rust and screen-printing on steel plates. I like this combination of mediums because it's a good balance of both digital and analog techniques. This medium also has a strong tie to my subject matter, which I like.

4. What have you learned through the creative process ?To trust the process. All of my really successful pieces have always involved a process of building and refining. My ideas almost never come out right the first time, they have to be refined. I have also learned to never limit myself the use of any tool. Just because a tool or technique isn't part of some grand tradition of art making doesn't mean it isn't a valid way to make art. Everything is art, not just oil painting.

5. What does graffiti symbolize for you and your work?The graffiti in some of my work is more about aesthetic then concept. I take a lot of photos of freight trains because I like the extremely weathered look they have. I started to notice how visually appealing some of the photos were when they were cropped. They often look like a perfectly balanced design composition. The graffiti, the bolts and rivets, the railroad logos, door handles, locks and years of rust and grime layer on each other in an visually interesting way. The graffiti adds a very appealing layer to all of this, because it is a hand made element. All the other layers are more rigid and industrial looking.

6. What is the role of the artist in our society? and in Oregon?I think the role of the artist is to evoke emotion. Any kind of emotion. The target emotion is different for every artist.

7. Where do you see yourself as an artist in 5 years?Still trying to figure how to be at my most creative, efficient and inspired. In a bigger studio space with more tools and more knowledge.

8. What are your ultimate goals as an artist?To sell enough art to not have a day job.

9. What does art mean to you?It means I will never be bored, because drawing is pretty much always free.